Stress-related sickness has soared among East Riding teachers, the council is being warned.

Days taken off for stress and mental health reasons soared to 5,156 in 2016/17 – up by a third on the year before.

Figures also show some 106 teachers have been on long-term stress leave, up 39 per cent on the previous year.

Numbers of teachers taking time off for stress are among the highest in the country, sparking a warning it is now a serious issue among the East Riding's 4,018 teachers.

Councillor Denis Healy, who will raise the issue at a council meeting next week, says: “These figures lay bare the impossible pressures our teachers are being put under.

Cllr Healy says teachers are being put under "impossible pressures"

“It is simply unacceptable that those working tirelessly to do the best for local children are seeing their mental ill-health affected as a result.

“This must be wake-up call to East Riding councillors.

“Stress and anxiety are fuelling the teacher recruitment and retention crisis, but the government’s current approach is making matters worse.”

Damian Walenta, divisional secretary of the National Education Union, says: “The sharp increase in teachers having to take time off for mental health related issues will come as no surprise to anyone who is working in education.

Damian Walenta of the National Education Union says "schools are becoming toxic places to work and learn"

“Sadly, it will also come as no surprise to pupils who have to work in today’s exam factories – many of whom will be suffering with anxiety, stress and depression themselves.

Read More

“Whilst these may do no harm, they do nothing to tackle the root causes of poor mental health in teachers – and it is hard to "live in the moment" if you have a huge stack of marking and your family are not getting to spend quality time with you.

“What managers really need to do is begin to tackle workload and excessive scrutiny – to really think about the well-being of teachers. Only when this happens will we begin to see a reversal of this shameful trend in teacher mental health.”

Cllr Healy (Lib Dem) will urge the council to write to Education Secretary Damian Hinds about an “intolerable pressure” on teachers from curriculum changes, assessment regimes and a burden of regulation and data collection.

He says: “This needs to be a really important issue for us in the East Riding, and I will be raising this as a motion for discussion at the full council meeting next Wednesday.

“I want the council to show our teachers how much we value what they do, and raise our concerns about the pressures they are under with the Secretary of State.”